Professor Michel Abs

The Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC)

Analysts compete to explain the causes of wars, their trajectories, and the outcomes they will produce. People try to understand why their loved ones were killed, displaced from their homes, impoverished, or thrown into the depths of misery, often believing that what they see on the surface may answer their questions.

On the other hand, the social sciences attempt to analyze or explain wars in a scholarly effort to derive theories that provide an appropriate interpretation of this human madness called war. Yet, none of this erases or justifies the tragedies inflicted on people by the crimes of others.

Some researchers consider war a necessity of industrial or modern society, based on two justifications:

First, war is an economic necessity, as it stimulates the economy through wartime consumption, primarily the use of ammunition and weapons, and later drives investments when the war subsides, on the basis that reconstruction of destroyed areas or repair of damaged infrastructure is required. Victims are rarely mentioned in this context.

Second, war is a necessity of modernity, as it dismantles social structures that certain social groups may have grown weary of, replacing them with new structures acceptable to those previously dissatisfied with prior conditions.

The difference between the two interpretations is that in the first case, the beneficiary is the active participant in the war, who then reaps whatever gains are possible. In the second case, the beneficiary is often not an actor but gains secondary benefits from the actions of others. In other words, their gain comes incidentally or as a byproduct rather than as a primary reward…

مرصد فلسطين - تقرير الجمعة 6 آذار/ مارس 202

In light of the worsening humanitarian and social conditions in the region due to the escalation of security operations, the Middle East Council of Churches presents a weekly report entitled "Palestine Monitor," which includes the latest developments in Palestine, especially amid the deteriorating living, social, and security conditions in the country. Some texts will be in Arabic, and some others in English, depending on the source.

في ظلّ تفاقم الظروف الإنسانيّة والاجتماعيّة في المنطقة جرّاء تصاعد العمليّات الأمنيّة فيها، يقدّم مجلس كنائس الشرق الأوسط تقريرًا أسبوعيًّا بعنوان "مرصد فلسطين" حيث يتضمّن آخر المستجدّات الّتي تشهدها فلسطين خصوصًا وسط تدهور الظروف المعيشيّة والاجتماعيّة والأمنيّة في البلاد. ستكون بعض النصوص باللغة العربية، وبعضها الآخر باللّغة الإنكليزيّة، وذلك حسب المصدر.

The Middle East Council of Churches is closely monitoring with great concern the serious developments currently taking place in the region, amid escalating military tensions, which are accompanied by severe humanitarian consequences affecting civilians and local communities in several countries across the Middle East. The recent events, in addition to those that preceded them, have led to painful human losses and damages, resulting in a humanitarian situation that can only be described as catastrophic.

What the region is witnessing today is part of a series of accumulated crises that its peoples have faced over the past years, with many communities already suffering from difficult economic conditions and increasing vulnerability in their social fabric. The recent escalation has exacerbated the scale of the humanitarian tragedy, particularly with the damage to essential facilities such as hospitals, schools, and vital service networks. This situation threatens all social groups, particularly the most vulnerable, with special impacts on children, the elderly, patients, and those with special needs.

The Middle East Council of Churches is closely following the reality of the affected communities through its networks, which include churches and partner institutions spread across the region. The churches and their institutions have proactively provided emergency humanitarian aid to needy families without discrimination, based on their mission to serve humanity, preserve dignity, and foster solidarity among local communities…

At the Recital "Your Sight On Our Homeland"

MECC Archive 2024

Under the patronage and blessings of His Beatitude Patriarch Cardinal Mar Bechara Boutros Al-Rai, Maronite Patriarch of Antioch and All the East, represented by His Eminence Bishop Hanna Alwan, the Patriarchal Vicar General, a spiritual recital was held under the title “Your Sight On Our Homeland”, during which the Secretary General of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) Professor Dr. Michel Abs delivered a word that carried the title "Your Endowment Oh God".

The recital was performed by the Journalist and Artist Dalia Freyfer, accompanied by the Musician Mr. Fadi Abi Hachem, on Friday 11 October 2024, in the Church of Christ the King - Zouk Mosbeh, Lebanon. Noting that it took place at the invitation and organization of the Middle East Council of Churches (MECC) and the Pastoral Office for Persons with Disabilities (POPD) in the Maronite Patriarchate – Bkerke, Lebanon.